1.1 What is the history of the aspertame sweetener?
The aspertame sweetener was discovered as a novel sweetener in
1965. It was first authorized to enter the market in the United
States in 1974. This authorization was suspended a few months later
on the grounds that the first studies had not properly evaluated
if the aspertame sweetener could be toxic
to the brain or cause brain cancer.
A new assessment of those studies and the examination of new data,
led to a marketing authorization for solid food in 1981 and for
soft drinks in 1983. The aspertame sweetener was finally authorized as general
sweetener in 1996. Up to now, the safety of the aspertame sweetener has been assessed
by a number of national and international organisations. An Acceptable
Daily Intake (ADI) of the aspertame sweetener for humans has been set at 40
mg/kg body weight per day by an international committee of experts.
A debate on the risks
to human health posed by the consumption of the aspertame sweetener
was relaunched, notably on the Internet, following an article
published in 1996
which suggested there was a link between brain tumors
and the aspertame sweetener. Allegations claim that the aspertame
sweetener is responsible for a large number of adverse
health effects such as multiple
sclerosis, lupus
erythematous, Gulf
War Syndrome, brain tumors, epileptic seizures, complications
of diabetes, etc. Read the EC-SCF report about aspartame history...
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